Boilers, incinerators, furnaces and other devices burn fuels of various types, e.g. coal, garbage and other wastes, metal, coke, etc. Ash is one of the by products of such burning. Some of the ash, known as fly ash, collects on the insides of pipes or chimneys of the burner while bottom ash collects on the grate at the bottom of the burner. Cupola ash is produced by the smelting of ferrous and non ferrous metals by burning coke and/or coal in cupolas to form ingots at temperatures exceeding 1000.degree. C.
Depending upon the source of ash, it may contain metals such as arsenic, barium, chromium, cadmium, lead, mercury, selenium, and silver which may leach or otherwise enter into the environment. Metals of particular concern are heavy metals such as lead and cadmium metals which are prone to leach under acid conditions. Their toxicity with respect to human animal life is also of concern.
As a result of the enactment of the Resource Conservation Recovery Act (RCRA), the disposal of wastes containing such metals is subject to the EPA Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP) test. Under this act, ash is a solid waste subject to the TCLP test which serves as one of the criteria for distinguishing between hazardous and non-hazardous wastes. If a waste solid is determined to be hazardous, it must be disposed of according to more stringent regulations which adds costs to the products which produce these wastes as by-products.
According to the TCLP test, the sample is acidified, then, followed by instrumental analysis to measure the concentrations of any metallic ion that may have been leached from the sample. It is difficult for wastes containing metals to pass the test because metals have a tendency to resolubilize under acidic conditions and the TCLP test is carried out under such conditions.
Typically, the metals in ash are stabilized by forming an aqueous slurry of water and ash. The aqueous slurry is treated with lime (calcium hydroxide) to precipitate metal hydroxide solids out of solution and entrap them in cement which forms when the slurry dries. However, such treatment does not permanently prevent the leaching of the metals if they are exposed to an acidic environment over time. Therefore, there is a need to develop improved means which effectively stabilize the metals indefinitely.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,264,135 discloses a process for treating wastewater sludge which is removed from metal-bearing wastewater. The metals are in the form of metal hydroxide precipitates because the pH of the sludge is alkaline, typically 7-9. The sludge is treated with diethylcarbamate, dimethyldithiocarbamate, and sodium trithiocarbonate, or salts thereof, to stabilize the metal hydroxide precipitates in the sludge, reducing their propensity to redissolve and leach into the environment under acidic leaching conditions.